Family Guy: 5 Ways The First Season Has Aged Poorly (& 5 Why It Will Always Be Funny)

Seth MacFarlane’s Family Guy has introduced audiences to numerous memorable characters, hilarious cutaways, and ridiculous running jokes over the years.

Since the first season aired in 1999, the show has undergone a number of changes as it is now close to being two decades old. While changes are inevitable for any show that has been on the air as long as Family Guy has, some of these changes have helped the show evolve and stay relevant, while others have been less successful. In some cases, the show removed an aspect that worked well in the first season.

10 Poorly: Sitcom Humor

When Family Guy was first starting out, the show was much more similar to a standard sitcom. While there were occasional flashes of brilliance in the first season, the show mostly relied on conventional sitcom tropes and storylines at first.

Since the first season, the show has done a much better job of taking advantage of the medium of animation by depicted scenes and stories that could only happen in animation. Family Guy has also found its comedic voice, developing a unique tone that separates it from live-action sitcoms.

9 Funny: Sitcom Humor

While it is an overall improvement that the show now has its own comedic voice and tone, there are still plenty of laughs to be found in the first season’s sitcom-style humor. There is a reason why so many shows use this type of humor as it is simple and familiar.

Family Guy has become over the top and ridiculous in the more recent seasons but seeing the show take a more balanced approach in the first season is an entertaining experience as well.

8 Poorly: Animation

Animation technology has come a long way since 1999. Even the highest level of animation from 1999 does not compare favorably to the animation of today. As such, it is understandable that the animation style of Family Guy season 1 cannot stand up to the show’s look today.

They even make fun of the older animation in the season 10 episode “Back to the Pilot,” in which Brian and Stewie time travel back to the first episode. Brian jokes that Stewie is so poorly animated in the pilot that he looks like a knockoff carnival prize.

7 Funny: Stewie’s Evil Plans

Out of all the changes the show has undergone since its first season, the characterization of Stewie is one of the most prominent and drastic. More recently, Stewie is often depicted as eloquent and eccentric.

But in the first season, Stewie is obsessed with killing his mother, Lois, and taking over the entire world. His lofty ambitions are dismissed by those around him since he is just a baby. Season 1’s Stewie is a funny character with an iconic catchphrase and unique storylines.

6 Poorly: Meg’s Voice

Meg is often used as a punchline seeing as she is bullied by her family and classmates. But over the course of the seasons, Meg has become a more developed character who is capable of being the main focus of an episode, thanks in large part to the strange yet sympathetic voice acting performance by Mila Kunis.

However, in the first season, Meg was voiced by multiple different actresses. In the pilot, Meg was played by Seth MacFarlane’s sister Rachael MacFarlane. For the rest of the season, she was played by actress Lacey Chabert, who is best known for her role as Gretchen Wieners in Mean Girls.

5 Funny: Peter Is More Relatable

In the first season, Peter is a more relatable and grounded character. He is the typical sitcom husband who irritates his wife by drinking with his buddies, forgetting family events, and refusing to help out around the house. While this is a familiar character archetype, Seth MacFarlane finds ways to take it to another level and create humorous situations.

Now, Peter is a much more ridiculous character who is no longer rooted in reality. While still funny, he is more of a cartoon character and less of a sitcom lead.

4 Poorly: Brian Is Just The Straight Man

In recent seasons, Brian has become one of the more prominent characters, often getting his own plot or subplot in episodes. He is pretentious and self-important, frequently being used by the show as a parody of an extreme liberal point of view. His self-sabotaging attempts at dating and his adventures with Stewie are among the most entertaining aspects of the show.

But in the first season, Brian lacks much of his now-signature personality, mostly functioning as the straight man or voice of reason who points out the ridiculousness around him. The last episode of season 1 does revolve around Brian, wisely setting up the show to move more in that direction as it went on.

3 Funny: Originality

Family Guy has become a show filled with running jokes and reoccurring bits. From fights with Ernie the Giant Chicken to Conway Twitty performances, fans have come to expect callbacks to certain jokes and characters. However, this is only possible after spending seasons establishing these bits.

Because season 1 has no history to draw from, it is filled with only new jokes and characters, giving it a freshness that the other seasons do not have. As a result, the show offers a wider variety of jokes instead of reusing the same ones over and over again.

2 Poorly: Lack Of Development For Side Characters

Family Guy has a rich roster of fan-favorite characters, some with big roles and some who remain unnamed. However, most of these characters do not get an opportunity to shine in season 1. The first season almost exclusively focuses on the Griffins, to the detriment of the other characters.

Cleveland Brown only appears in 2 episodes in season 1, Quagmire appears in 3 episodes, and Joe Swanson only appears in 1 episode. Even characters within the family like Chris and Meg do not really get too much screentime.

1 Funny: Brian And Peter’s Relationship

The recent seasons have made good use of the dynamic between Brian and Stewie, often pairing the two up for adventures and subplots. But as great as their pairing is, the first season focuses more on the friendship between Peter and Brian. Brian is shown to be one of Peter’s friends, hanging out with him and the rest of the guys.

Brian gets to point out the absurdity of Peter’s behavior and acts as the voice of reason. Brian is better suited in his new role, but it is funny to watch the interactions between these two polar opposite characters.

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